


We Found You

by StellaLuna34



Category: Marvel Cinematic Universe, Spider-Man: Homecoming (2017), Venom (Movie 2018)
Genre: All Platonic - Freeform, Brotherly Bonding, Brotherly Love, Family Feels, Family Fluff, Fluff and Angst, Found Family, Gen, Hurt/Comfort, Not a ship, short summary: They become a family
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2018-11-21
Updated: 2018-11-26
Packaged: 2019-08-27 00:50:06
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 6
Words: 8,396
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/16692205
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/StellaLuna34/pseuds/StellaLuna34
Summary: Peter never expected to run into a strange, alien creature on his nightly patrol, nor did he think a California reporter would be behind the creature’s scary teeth and eyes. Surprisingly, they get along well, and Peter somehow convinces Eddie to come to the Avengers Compound.During Eddie’s stay, both Peter and Eddie notice the stress and anxiousness increase within the Avengers team, but it isn’t because of Venom. Word goes around about someone experimenting with ‘gifted’ individuals, and risks begin to rise when some of the Avengers are out fighting.Eddie doesn’t know much about what’s going on, but what he does know is that he must protect Peter at all cost.





	1. Chapter 1

Today was way more than Peter bargained for. Taking down  thieves? Not a problem. Taking down supervillain plans? With the right plan, it can be super easy; but a large, human-eating alien? How was he supposed to handle that?

“Karen, please tell me I’m dreaming.” Peter asked with an appalled gaze as he watched the alien thing leap from building to building.

“Sorry Peter, you’re not.” the A.I. replied. “I tried scanning the creature to identify it, but nothing is showing up.”

“How am I going to fight that thing?” Peter sighed as he began chasing the creature. “It looks like it walked right out of a scary movie.”

“Should I call Mr. Stark?” Karen suggested. “He has dealt with extraterrestrial beings before, along with Doctor Strange.”

“No! No! Don’t call either one of them.” Peter stammered frantically. 

“Why not?”

“Because I...I got this. Yeah, totally.” Peter replied, half trying to convince himself. He was doing fine on his own and he didn’t want to call in the big guns unless he absolutely needed to. He’s handled a money-obsessed thief with huge mechanical wings, this thing couldn’t be as bad, right?

As Peter  silently followed behind, he watched the alien fall into an alleyway. He tried to peak over, but the glowing pink and orange from the horizon didn’t give much light since blue and black had already painted the sky. Not long after, a sharp, quick scream came from the corner of the street, and the dark creature moved quickly towards the sound. However, Peter was faster and took no time to get to the person screaming. When he got there, he saw a masked man holding a young lady back while covering her mouth. As he reached for his gun in his jacket, Peter shot a web at the man’s hand. The man screamed in surprise and let go of the woman. Just as she was running away, the tall dark creature stood at the entrance of the alleyway. 

“Finally,” The creature purred while walking towards the masked man. “I’ve been waiting for a snack.”

“Woah woah woah! Hang on!” Peter shouted as he stepped in front of the wide-eyed robber. The robber’s body trembled as he stood completely still. The creature narrowed their opaque white eyes. 

“Get out of the way.” They hissed, their voice deep and gravely. 

“Excuse me Mr. Alien, but I don’t think eating people is a good idea.” Peter replied as he nudged the robber to move. The man snapped out of his trance and began to stumble away. Suddenly, Peter felt the hairs of his arm stand straight up, and he ducked as quick as he could. As he ducked, he felt something brush against the top of the mask and the robber let out a scream. When Peter looked back up, the creature’s extended arm had caught the man and began to pull him back towards them. 

“Wait! Stop!” Peter shouted as climbed up the building wall and shot webs at the man in an attempt to pull the robber away from the alien. Once he secured five strong webs, he flipped off the wall and shot a web net around the creature. As Peter landed on a tall trash bin, he began to shoot more webs around the creature’s arms and legs. While the creature strained, their grip on the man tightened and began to strangle the robber. Peter noticed and leaped to him. 

“Please don’t eat me!” the man shouted, his voice cracking. 

“You’re not gonna get eaten, I’ll get you out of here.” Peter assured him as he began to pry open the dark alien claws. 

“If you’re quick enough, little spider.” He heard the creature chuckle. Despite his heightened senses, Peter wasn’t quick enough to realize the creature had freed their other hand. Terror pulsed through his body as he felt a clawed hand grab him by the throat. He tried to pull off the hand as well as help the robber, but the hand pulled him back to the tall creature.

“Looks like I’m getting two meals.” The creature snickered as they smiled, displaying their numerous razor sharp teeth. 

“I’d really prefer it if I wasn’t an evening snack.” Peter replied as he tried to escape the creature’s death grip. He tried to keep his voice leveled, but it cracked. He tried to shoot webs at the creature’s face, but they only tightened their grip as they dogged the hits by forming a small, dark shield around them.

“Please don’t eat me. Please don’t eat me.” Peter quietly begged as he was pulled closer to the alien. 

Just as the creature’s mouth began to open, he heard another man’s voice yell, but it sounded muffled. 

“We are NOT eating a kid!” The muffled voice hollered. The creature paused and closed its mouth. 

“This is not a  _ child _ .” The creature hissed. “Human children are smaller.”

“There is such a thing as a teenager.” Peter added, hoping it would continue stalling the creature. 

“Teenager?” The alien questioned, but it seemed their question was answered by the confusion fading from their face. Suddenly, their face twisted up.

“No! We’re hungry, and unless our liver is dinner, we won’t put either one of them down.” The creature snapped, as if they were talking to someone. There was a pause as the creature thought, and Peter took the chance to sling a web behind him to pull him out of the death grip. Before Peter tried his escape plan, the grip around his neck loosened and placed him back down on the ground. Peter watched in awe as the large creature in front of him slowly morph into a man a little bit taller than him. 

“Eat my damn liver. We are not eating in front of him.” The man hissed as he watched the robber race down the alleyway. Peter couldn’t see the man very well due to the city lights glowing behind him, but he could tell he was older and probably in his early thirties. 

“Get out of here kid. I can only hold the big guy back for so long.” He commented as he zipped up his brown leather jacket.

“You’re- you’re that? You turn into that??” Peter stammered out. The man scoffed, but it didn’t seem directed towards Peter. 

“The name’s Venom,” the man replied. Peter paused for a moment. He recognized that voice. 

“Wait, wait a sec. I know you.” Peter added as he approached the man.

“No you don’t.” The man quickly replied. 

“You’re that cool LA reporter! Eddie Brock, right?” Peter chimed. The man paused.

“Since when did New Yorkers watch my content?”

“I had to watch you for a journaling class-” Peter began before mentally hitting himself. Eddie’s eyebrows rose. 

“So you  _ are _ a kid?”

“No, I’m not.” 

“Sounds like you’ve still some growing to do.”

Peter’s jaw nearly dropped.

“So what? At least I’ll be taller than you.” He jabbed, and the reporter laughed. He paused before he scoffed.

“No, he doesn’t need our protection. He’s fine on his own.”

Peter gave a confused glance at Eddie, but it probably didn’t show very well with his mask.

“Who do you keep talking to?” He questioned.

“None of your business.” Eddie replied as he turned around. “Anyways, I’ve got to get going. Keep this between us will ya?”

“Wait!” Peter called out. “You’re looking for some bad guys to eat, right?”

Eddie paused as he turned his head towards him. Peter knew Tony was going to kill him for this, but he’d prefer it if he knew where the human-eating creature was. He also hoped he could help avoid any other person from being eaten.

“I might know someone who can help.”

  
  



	2. Chapter 2

“ _Is this really a good idea?_ ” Eddie heard Venom question as he parked the rental car in the large driveway of the Avengers compound.

“Probably not, but I’d rather not run into the spiderling while we try to find food.” Eddie sighed as he shoved his hands in his jacket pockets. As he began to walk towards the front entrance of the compound, his heart began to race.

“ _Why did your heart rate increase? Are you nervous?_ ” Venom questioned.

“Not now.” Eddie hissed. “Flip through my memories some other time.”

The cold northern air bit at Eddie’s skin, but it didn’t bother him much due to the warmth the symbiote gave him. As he looked up at the towering structure, he shook his head. Eddie wasn’t a huge fan of architecture, but he had to admit the buildings before him were nicer than he thought they would be.

Just before Eddie could knock on the etched glass door, the door swung open.

“Come in.” He heard a familiar young voice say from behind the door. As Eddie walked in, the door closed to reveal a young man no older than eighteen.

“ _That’s him._ ” Venom commented. “ _I recognize his scent._ ”

_His voice sounds the same too._ Eddie thought.

“Hi. I’m Peter.” The teen introduced as he held out his hand.

“I’m Eddie, but I think you figure that out last time we met.”  Eddie replied as he shook the teen’s hand. Peter’s eyes went wide.

“How’d you recognize me?” He questioned with a slight look of fear in his face.

“Your voice is a dead giveaway” Eddie chuckled. The mixture of horror and shock still stayed on Peter’s face.

“Relax kid; I doubt your enemies will be talking to you outside of fighting.” Eddie added. “Besides, I’ve probably got some kind of heightened sense of hearing with Venom.”

Peter nodded and let out a breath he forgot he was holding. Once he did, he began to walk towards the staircase, signaling Eddie to follow. As they reached the second floor, Eddie noticed Peter’s shoulders were still slightly up. Although he relaxed a bit, Eddie could tell he was still trying to calm some nerves.

“You alright?” Eddie questioned. Peter turned his head and waved a hand.

“Yeah yeah, I’m alright. I guess I’m still nervous from meeting you outside of my suit.” Peter replied.

“Buddy, I hate to break it to you, but I don’t think it’s that big of a deal. You act like I know who you are.”

Peter’s jaw dropped as he halted his walking.

“Hey! It’s a big deal for me, alright? I don’t give out that secret to anyone.” He insisted. Eddie rolled his eyes as he shook his head slightly.

Once they approached the door at the end of the hallway, Peter stopped Eddie from going in.

“Okay, I know I probably should have told Mr. Stark or someone else before you showed up, but I figured it be easier if we just ripped off the bandaid.” Peter rambled, causing Eddie to facepalm.

“So you’re telling me no one knows I’m here?” He asked while he sighed.

“Pretty much.”

“Well I hope Stark isn’t busy with one of his iron man suits; otherwise I’m a dead man.”

Peter looked at Eddie in confusion and Eddied sighed again.

“This isn’t my first time meeting the guy, and we’re not on good terms. I tried doing a story on him and got kicked out of New York.” He explained.

“Oh, well this should go well.” Peter laughed nervously.

*~*~*

“Peter, why on _earth_ is Brock here?” Tony tried to ask calmly, but his annoyance rang clear.

“Mr. Stark please let me explain.” Peter began.

“You’ve got forty-five seconds.” Tony interrupted as he looked at his watch.

“Okay, so Mr. Brock has got some kind of abilities to and I didn’t know what to do since he has to eat human beings to keep the other guy from eating his organs and I thought you might be able to help him-” Peter explained almost incoherently, but Tony was able to follow.

“Hang on, what ‘abilities’?”

Peter turned to Eddie and waved to get his attention from across the room.

“Hey, uh, Mr. Brock-”

“Just call me Eddie. Not a fan of Mr. Brock.”

“Um, okay. Mr. Eddie-”

Tony didn’t have to look at Eddie to know he threw a the half-serious, half-joking glare at Peter.

“-could you show Mr. Stark, the uh, other one?” Peter stammered. Eddie nodded at the teen and took a step back. Tony nearly took a few steps back as he watched the reporter transform into a tall, dark creature with terrifyingly sharp teeth.

“We are Venom.” The creature added. “The spiderling told us you could help get us food.”

Tony turned his head to Peter, who was already holding his hands up as if he were child in trouble.

“So he did, huh?” He replied as he raised an eyebrow at Peter, who smiled nervously.

“Yes, and we are very hungry.”

Tony sighed and he turned back to the creature.

“Well, I’d rather you not eat anyone, but is there any other substitute you can have?”

“We want human organs.” Venom growled.

“What about other animal organs? Pigs? Sheep? Someone of them are pretty similar to us.”

Venom narrowed their white eyes as they thought.

“We’ll give it a try.”

“Perfect. I’ll bring some here before the day is over.” Tony sighed in relief. “And Peter will show you to a guest room. I think it’s best if you don’t go around New York terrorizing people while you look for something to eat.”

With a ‘you’re in trouble later’ glare aimed at Peter, Tony left the room.

“I hope this works.” Peter commented as he turned back to Venom.

“You better. We’re only doing this so you aren’t in the way when we eat.” Venom hissed before transforming back into Eddie.

“Wait; guest room? I’m _not_ staying here. Especially when Stark lives here.” Eddie added as he walked out of the room and to the stairs.

“Wait! Mr. Eddie-” Peter began as he chased Eddie down the hall, but was stopped when Eddie whirled around and held up his index finger to silence him.

“It’s Eddie. No Mr. Eddie, no Mr. Brock. _Just Eddie_.” He interrupted.

“Got it.” Peter replied while nodding.

“Now, if you’ll excuse me, I’m leaving.”

“You can’t! The other avengers will hunt you down.”

“I think we can take them.”

“Please!” Peter pleased as he grabbed Eddie’s sleeve just as he swung open the door. “Why start fights when we can prevent them? I’m sure there's going to be some really bad guy you can take a bite at.”

Eddie looked at Peter, then towards his car parked in the driveway. There was a brief moment of silence before Eddie sighed a shook his head.

“Fine, but let me get my stuff.”

 


	3. Chapter 3

Both Eddie and Venom were quite shocked Tony’s plan had worked. After they had eaten the animals as Venom, Eddie expected the hunger to come back, but after hours had passed, it didn’t.

_ Give it a day. _ Eddie thought to himself and Venom. When a whole day had passed, Eddie was astonished.

“Guess we were wrong about your idea, Stark.” Eddie commented as he walked in the kitchen. Tony was getting his third cup of coffee when Eddie had came in for a glass of water.

“I had a feeling it would work.” Tony chuckled as he stirred a silver spoon in his coffee mug, which had “World’s Best Defender” written on it, but Eddie could tell ‘defender’ was written in. He assumed it was originally ‘world’s best dad’.

“I don’t mean to poke at your eating habits, but why didn’t you try eating animals sooner?” Tony questioned, breaking Eddie from his thoughts.

“You think San Francisco has farmland close by?” Eddie scoffed. 

“It might.”

“Well I wasn’t going to waste gas to look for one.”

“Fair enough.”

Even if Tony made Eddie’s skin crawl sometimes, he noticed the engineer had changed. When Eddie was beginning to become a well-known reporter in New York, Tony never stopped to think about others. Back then, Eddie wanted to know why Tony was creating new weapons that could threaten the lives of many innocent people. When he tried to bring up the subject in an interview, Tony ignored him and got him in trouble. Later on, when Eddie moved to California, he got news of Tony’s disappearance. He knew what had happened to Tony in Afghanistan, but he didn’t think he had changed. Yes, he did stop producing weapons, but Eddie was wary on if he was being truthful or not. Now he was beginning to realize he was being honest. Although Tony hid his emotions well, Eddie could also tell Tony had a weight on his shoulders. 

_ “He doesn’t seem as bad as your memories portray him _ . Venom commented. “ _ Perhaps that ordeal did change him.” _

_ Yeah, a lot more than I realized _ . Eddie thought to Venom.

_ “We do not think his nickname, ‘Merchant of Death’, applies now. He does not seem like a killer.”  _ Venom added as Eddie felt them dig around his memories.

_ I thought you didn’t like him. _ Eddie questioned.

_ “We don’t, but we can tell he is very protective of Peter.” _

Eddie rolled his eyes.

_ Don’t tell me the kid is growing on you.  _

“ _ He is growing on both of us, admit it. _ ” The symbiote laughed.

After the morning started to fade into the afternoon, Eddie started looking for a quiet place to think. He had to start working on his report, which was the only reason why he was in New York. As he walked down the large, grey hallways of the compound, he began to look for any conference room available. As he looked around, he found a room filled with Tony’s engineering equipment and a large lab-like room. He also found a half-padded room with various blunt weapons and assumed it was the training room. At some points, Eddie found himself lost in the small maze of the compound. Was it really this hard to find a conference room? 

“What room are you looking for?” Eddie heard a new voice ask. The reporter turned his head to see an older man with short, dirty blonde hair. 

“Do you guys have a conference room?” Eddie questioned.

“Yeah, but why would a new recruit need to use it?” the man replied. Eddie fought the urge to roll his eyes.

“I’m not a new recruit.” Eddie stated. “I’m only here because of Stark.”

“Oh, Stark brought you in. Huh, you must be really gifted if he recruited you.” The man continued while he studied Eddie. 

“Can you please just show me the room?” Eddie sighed. “I just wanted a quiet place to work.”

“Down the hall and to your left.” the man replied, then held out his hand. “I’m Clint. And you are-?”

“Eddie.” 

“Nice to meet you Eddie. See ya around.”

Just as Eddie began to walk down the hallway, he jumped at the sight of something green and maroon coming out of the wall. 

_ “What the hell is that?! _ ” Venom questioned as Eddie’s hand was quickly covered with the symbiote and ready to punch.  As the figure completely phased through the wall, they turned their head to see who they had started.

“My apologies.” The robot said. Eddie patted his chest as he tried to control his breathing, which had increased due to the scare.

“No problem bud, just give a heads up next time.” Eddie replied. As he watched the robot phase through the other wall, he heard footsteps behind him. 

“He does that a lot. No matter how much we try to get him to knock, it doesn’t really stick with him.” An authoritative voice commented. When Eddie turned around, he was greeted by a tall man in a red, white, and blue outfit. Before Eddie could say anything, the man began to walk away, but Eddie noticed the small side glare.

“ _ Why did he do that? _ ” Venom questioned.

“Well, if Stark told anyone about us, it would probably be Captain America.” Eddie replied as he began to walk towards the conference room.

“ _ That doesn’t answer the question. _ ”

“Let’s just say if anyone really didn’t like how we handle things, its that guy.”

 

*~*~*

“Hey Mr. Stark!” Peter greeted as he set his backpack down and opened it up to reveal his spider-man suit stuffed in it along with his notebooks.

“Hey kid.” Tony replied as he closed the numerous blue screens hovering in front of him. “Did you already break it again?”

“No, I’m not that reckless.” Peter laughed as he pulled out his green spiral notebook and a pencil.

“So what’s up?”

“You wouldn’t happen to know a lot about biology, would you?”

Tony chuckled to himself and took the open notebook Peter had placed on his desk.

“I’ll call Strange. He knows way more about it than I do.” The engineer replied as he grabbed his phone. Peter held up a finger to ask one more question, but Tony waved his hand as if he knew what he was about to ask.

“Brock is working somewhere quiet. Check one of the conference rooms.”

With that, Peter was off to the first floor and down the left hallway past the kitchen. He tried sneaking past the rooms, but he knew it was no use since the rooms had frosted windows facing the hallway. As he passed one, he noticed a figure sitting on one corner of the table. 

“Hey Eddie?” He called out as he knocked on the door. Peter’s brows furrowed at the sound of no reply. He tried knocking again, but there was no response.

“Eddie?” Peter questioned again as he slowly opened the door. As he did, his eyes landed on the filled pieces of notebook paper scattered around the table along with an open notepad and a journal. A laptop sat in front of Eddie, who had headphones on. The headphones were connected to some type of recording device. As Eddie looked up from his work, his eyes went wide at the sight of Peter standing at the door.

“Jeez kid, would it kill ya to knock?” He yelped as he jumped in his chair. 

“I did. You couldn’t hear me.” Peter replied as walked in and closed the door behind him. “What are you working on?”

“An article due next week.” Eddie sighed as he began to stack his paperwork together. “What are you doing here? Don’t you have patrol?”

“That isn’t until later. I’ve got biology tutoring with Doctor Strange.”

Eddie raised his eyebrows at the name. 

“Wait, the famous neurosurgeon? He works here?” He questioned.

“Not really. He just helps out Mr. Stark and the avengers when we really need it.” Peter explained. “May I look at what your writing?”

“Just don’t tell anyone else about it, or I’ll get in big trouble.” Eddie huffed as he handed Peter some of the papers. While Peter read through his messy notes, Eddie went back to typing on his computer. He was getting back into the flow of his writing when a the sound of a door slamming broke him from his thoughts. He turned his head to the door, then to Peter, who had stopped reading and looked to him. His young, brown eyes shimmered with a trace of fear as he looked to the room’s door. Muffled, incoherent arguing could be heard close by. Without giving it a second thought, Eddie signaled peter to take his seat, which was closest to the corner of the room, as he stealthily walked to the door.

“I don’t care how good of a plan you have Rogers; we can’t just barge in there! The government and the media will rip us apart!” He heard Tony argue as he slowly peaked to see outside of the room. 

“This corporation is allegedly experimenting with humans that have special abilities; we can’t just sit by and wait to get an ‘okay’ from the government.” Eddie heard Captain America fire back. 

“Yeah, and that puts some of our team members at risk! I’m not going to chance it.”

“If we don’t act now, we’ll regret it later.”

“Rogers, I am not going to threaten the safety of our youngest members.”

Something clicked in Eddies head as he heard them argue, and he knew Tony was referring to Peter. 

“What’s going on?” he heard Peter whisper softly. Eddie quietly closed the door and shook his head. 

“Star Spangled Banner and Stark are just arguing about some mission. Don’t worry about it.” Eddie whispered back as he sat in the chair next to the teen. “Hey, you want to listen to the interview I recorded?”

Eddie could tell Peter wasn’t super interested, but understood why Eddie was trying to get his attention off of the argument outside.

“Sure.”

  
  



	4. Chapter 4

“Mr. Stark, _please_ tell me you know someone who’s good at English.”  Peter pleaded as he walked into Tony’s workshop. He dropped his backpack next to the bar chair at the end of the rectangular table and slumped in the chair.

“Why?” Tony questioned as he set down the armor he was working, making a small clang from the metal hitting the silver table. Peter sighed as he dug through his backpack and pulled out a graded essay. Tony’s jaw almost dropped and Peter rested his head on the table in shame.

“You got a C+?” The engineer questioned. Peter nodded, still keeping his head down.

“My teacher is going to let us do corrections, but _still_.” Peter mumbled.

“I don’t see the problem if you can get points back.”

“But I got a C and I don’t understand why!” Peter sighed as he looked up.

“Kid, a C isn’t going to kill your GPA-”

“It could!”

“-and you also can make up those points.”

“Still.”

Tony rolled his eyes at the teen as he looked at the essay. From what he could tell, it was a persuasive essay. There were numerous red marks scattered through the essay, but they didn’t seem to make much sense.

“Have you tried talking to your teacher?” He asked as he reread the essay.

“I tried, but she’s not very good at explaining things, at least for me.” Peter replied as he moved his english folder aside and set out his academic decathlon notes.

“Maybe try talking to her again. For now, just focus on the decathlon.” Tony added as he took the pile of  brightly-colored notecards Peter set down on the desk. Even when they went through the notecards, Tony could tell Peter’s mind was still occupied by the essay. He was impressed that even when Peter’ mind was concerned on something else, he answered most of the decathlon questions correctly.

As they went through the notecards a second time, Tony and Peter paused at the sound of someone cursing down the hall, which echoed through the room they were in. Peter turned around quickly once he recognized the voice.

“Language, Brock!” Tony called out to the open door that led to the hallway. A moment later, the dirty-blonde haired reporter walked in front of the entrance.

“Sorry about that.” Eddie sighed as he messed with his unkempt hair.

“What’s wrong?” Peter questioned as he put his flashcards down.

“It’s nothing, really.” Eddie tried to convince, but Tony wasn’t buying it.

“It’s got to be something if you’re cursing like a sailor. You’re lucky Cap didn’t hear you.” Tony commented. Eddie rolled his eyes and shrugged.

“I just got off the phone with my boss, and-” Eddie began, but paused as he messed with his brown leather jacket.

“And?” Peter echoed.

“-and he said I need be well dressed for the interview I’m giving to a corporation.”

“What’s wrong with that?” Tony questioned.

“Well for starters, I only brought one suit and I have to shave. He said a stubble isn’t very professional.” Eddie groaned. Peter tried to hide a giggle, but Eddie caught it.

“What’s so funny?” Eddie shot at him jokingly.

“You’re upset because you have to shave?” The teen asked, hiding his smile. Eddie glared at him.

“Yes, I am, but I least I have a beard to shave.” Eddie snapped, and Peter’s jaw dropped as he glared back.

It took every ounce of self control for Tony not to facepalm.

“Boys! what are we, twelve?” He interrupted. “Brock, come with me. Peter, you stay and continue studying.”

Peter and Eddie looked to one another and slightly shrugged, as if they were saying “I guess we’re following what he says” to one another.

As Eddie followed Tony, he noticed he they were walking to a large closet.

“Go get me your suit.” Tony ordered. Eddie thought about making a comment, but decided not to, and went to go get his suit. When he came back, Tony glanced at the simple,worn black suit once and sighed. He also put the dark blue tie, which was looped around the hanger, between his thumb and index finger to feel the fabric.

“Geez Brock, how old is this suit?” Tony commented as he continued to look at the suit.

“Hey, not everyone can afford a new one.” Eddie sighed.

“Who are you interviewing anyways?” Tony questioned as he moved away from Eddie to flip through various black garment bags in the closet, which were all hung neatly and had labels tied to them.

“Why does that matter?” Eddie questioned back.

“Well, considering your boss wanted you to shave and look your best, I’m assuming it’s a pretty big name. Wendell Corporation, right?”

Eddie tried to hide the shock in his face, but Tony was able to read it.

“Easy guess. If any big corporation likes well dressed people, it’s Wendell.” Tony added as he tried to suppress a smirk. Once Tony reached the halfway point of the closet, he sighed in relief and pulled out one garment. At Tony’s motion, the gears clicked in Eddie’s head. He tried to stop Tony from opening the bag up, but Tony shooed his hand.

“I hate to say this Brock, but you’d never get past the front door with your suit. Wendell is a very classy gal, and you won’t get a word out of her with that look.” He commented as he took off the garment bag to reveal a striking dark grey suit and slacks.

“There’s no way that’s going to fit if it’s one of your suits.” Eddie added as he studied the suit, which he assumed was worth more than his apartment.

“Luckily it isn’t. Rogers wouldn’t let me get him fitted for a suit for official meetings and other formal gatherings, so I got a range of suits in case he or the other avengers needed them.” Tony explained as he took the suit off the hanger and handed them to Eddie. The reporter reluctantly took it and walked to the bathroom. As he did, he stopped in his tracks and turned around.

“Why are you helping me?” He questioned, his voice softer than usual. “Last time we talked, it wasn’t really on good terms.”  
  
“I saw what happened to you. You lost your job and the woman you loved because you were following a hunch that was supposed to take down Drake, but you went about it in the worst way.” Tony sighed. “It was a selfish move, but you’re different now. Figured a fresh start might help you out.”

Eddie paused at Tony’s response, shocked that the famous billionaire shared a snippet of emotion.

“Go put on the suit. I’ve still got to help out Peter with schoolwork.” The engineer ordered, pointing in the direction of the bathroom. The steel facade Tony wore was back on. 

 As Eddie finished putting on the suit over his white collared shirt, he noticed the fit was better than he expected, and was almost impressed Tony had guessed his size right. Then again, Tony was used to dressing up, and probably knew sizing and colors like the back of his hand. When Eddie walked back into the room, Tony nodded in approval.

“That’s much better.” He commented.

“Woah!” Both men heard Peter exclaim as he walked into the room that connected to the workshop. “Dang Eddie, I didn’t think you knew how to clean up.”

“Ya know, I’m starting to think we should have bit off your head.” Eddie sassed as he buttoned the suit up completely. Before Peter could make another witty comeback, Tony exited the room, but was back a moment later with something else in his hand.

“You know, this is a three piece set-” He began, and Eddie shook his head.

“No way, Stark.”

“Why not? You’ve got to look your best, right?” Peter argued. “Nothing says ‘fancy’ and ‘proper’ like a three piece suit.”

Eddie put his face in his hands and sighed.

“Come on, just try it!” Peter persuaded.

“Fine.” Eddie scoffed as he took off the suit jacket and put on the vest. To his surprise, the three grey pieces went well with the white shirt and dark blue tie.

“See? Now you don’t need to shave. The suit will keep the attention off your face.” Tony added. “Just make sure to comb your hair. Otherwise all this work would have gone to waste.”

As Tony inspected the suit on Eddie, he paused in fear.

“Brock, please tell me you have something other than that leather jacket.” Tony half pleaded.

“I’ve got a hoodie,” Eddie chuckled. “But that’s about it.”

Tony took in a deep breath and closed his eyes, then sighed.

“Unbelievable.” He mumbled to himself as he walked off to the closest again. When he came back, he brought a pitch black topcoat and tossed it to Eddie.

“Not one spill on that topcoat, Brock.”


	5. Chapter 5

(A/N: I'm not too happy with the way this chapter turned out, so I'm probably going to rewrite it later. Just thought I'd give a heads up)

 

*~*~*

“Who taught you how to do that?” Peter questioned as he set his multi-colored flashcards in his lap. The teen sat comfortably in the cushioned chair next to Tony’s large, full-length mirror. Eddie huffed at the question as he continued to tie his navy blue tie while standing in front of the mirror.

“A friend of mine did,” He replied. “but you were probably expecting me to say ‘my dad’.”

“Actually, I was kinda hoping you wouldn’t.” Peter commented after a slightly long pause.

Eddie glanced at Peter, who looked down and began to fiddle with a corner of a flashcard. Both he and the symbiote picked up the small change in mood from Peter.

_“What’s wrong? Is he alright?”_ the symbiote questioned eagerly.

_Shh. Just let me talk._ Eddie silently replied.

“Why’s that?” He questioned to Peter, glancing back at him again.

“Oh, no reason.” The teen replied, never looking up from his flashcards. Eddie paused his actions for a moment as he looked at Peter again, knowing something was up. He could tell the teen didn’t want to talk, but it seemed like it was bugging him.

“My dad was an asshole.” Eddie began as he continued to tie. “He didn’t really think I’d succeed in life, so he never taught me.”

Peter’s light brown eyes widened as he looked up.

“I’m sorry, I didn’t mean-” The teen stammered.

“Give me sec, will ya?” Eddie laughed. “I’m not trying to throw a pity party. I just thought I’d share it with you.”

Peter rubbed the back of his neck as he pulled his feet up to sit criss-crossed on the chair.

“Could I talk to you about something?” He asked, almost mumbling it.

“Sure.” Eddie replied softly.

“Is it normal to miss people, even if they’ve been gone for a long time?” He asked, looking down again. “I mean, I love my aunt, and I love how we are now, but I can’t help but miss my uncle sometimes.”

_If he’s living with his aunt, then his parents must be out of the picture._ He told the symbiote, who was surprisingly quiet.

_“What happened to them?”_ They asked.

_I don’t know._

“It…It kinda feels like a missing piece, you know?” Peter continued, now messing with the chipped nail on his thumb. “I don’t know; I think I’m just rambling.”

“No no, I got it.” Eddie assured. “I’m not an expert at it, but do I know that it’s normal. Don’t beat yourself up about it.”

“You sure?”

“Yes, I’m positive.”

_“Wait a minute, you learned part of this cloth tying trick from Anne.”_ Venom interrupted as they formed a small, dark blob on Eddie’s shoulder.

“Who’s Anne?” Peter questioned, his eyebrows slightly raised.

“None of your business.” Eddie quickly replied as he shook his head.

_“Anne used to be his-”_ Venom began, but Eddie covered them with his hand.

“You know how to tie a tie, right?” Eddie questioned, trying to divert the attention.

“I mean, I did it once, but I had help. I’m not very good at it.” Peter explained. “But that still doesn’t answer my ques-”

“Alright then, I’ll teach you.” Eddie interrupted as he undid his tie and walked towards Tony’s closet.

“Hey! Where are you going? Mr. Stark is gonna get mad.”

“If he’s letting me borrow a suit for the day, then I think he’ll be fine if I borrow a tie to teach you.”

Peter rolled his eyes as he set his flashcards down on the ground and sat up. When the reporter returned from the large closet, he was trying to shoo the symbiote away from his shoulder, but they stayed put.

“Here.” Eddie sighed as he tossed Peter a bright red tie. “Let’s hope that isn’t a priceless tie.”

“I’m pretty sure everything Mr. Stark owns could be considered priceless.”

“You’re probably right.”

As Eddie began to teach Peter, he pulled him up from the chair and moved him in front of the mirror since Peter was getting confused on which way he crossed the tie. At first, Peter struggled with the beginning knot, but after a couple of tries, he got it. With Eddie’s careful teaching, Peter was able to make a decent tie the third try. Once Peter had the basics down, Eddie pointed out the small mistakes that could easily be fixed so it would look clean. The worry that had built up earlier in teen somehow dissipated as he focused on his tying skills. At first, Peter was nervous he had made Eddie uncomfortable with their earlier conversation, but the reporter didn’t seem to mind it. It seemed more like he understood and was open to hearing what Peter had to say. Normally, those close to Peter would get nervous when he brought up his uncle, and it was even worse when he tried to bring up his dad. He wanted to talk about it sometimes, but everyone always acted like they were walking on eggshells when he brought up the subject, so he kept quiet. Although it seemed odd to be relieved over, Peter was glad Eddie didn’t know about his family prior to meeting him. It made things easier somehow. Peter knew Eddie had suspicions about what had happened, he was an investigative reporter after all, but he didn’t act like it was a topic to avoid at all costs.

“So now that I’m practically a master at tying, are you going to answer my question?” Peter joked as he tied the red tie with ease. Eddie sighed and ran a hand through his hair.

“Anne was my fiance, but we broke it off.” Eddie sighed as he put on the grey suit vest and straightened his tie. Peter’s jaw dropped.

“Wait, you were going to get married?” Peter squeaked as he tried to hide a smirk.

“Yeah.” Eddie replied as he glanced at the teen, who had a mischievous smile on his face. “Why are you surprised? Is it that hard to believe?”

“Maybe.”

Eddie shot a glare at the teen, who was almost laughing, but covered his mouth to prevent it.

“I know you’ve got something to say. Spit it out.” Eddie sighed as he rolled his eyes.

“I didn’t think anyone would date you, much less marry you.” Peter giggled, and it was Eddie’s turn to drop his jaw.

_“I agree.”_ Venom added, knowing they were adding fuel to the fire. Before Peter could react, Eddie punched his arm and got him in a loose headlock.

“You sure got some nerve, kid.” He laughed as he messed up the teens curls. “Try that again, and you’ll be dinner.”

“Hey hey! Don’t mess up Mr. Stark’s suit!” Peter yelped as he tapped the arm around his neck. “And don’t you have to go soon?”

“You’re lucky I do.”

After putting up the red tie and making sure Eddie’s suit was to Tony’s expectations, Eddie grabbed the black topcoat from the chair next to the closet and grabbed the rental car keys. As he walked out into the cold air, he glanced behind him to see Peter waving with Tony standing next to him.

“Good luck!”


	6. Chapter 6

The glass building air was far colder than Eddie had expected. Even though he wore the nice topcoat Tony had let him borrow, a chill crept up is spine. The building was similar to Carlton Drake’s in terms of the amount of windows and glass designs, but it had a different air to it. Drake liked to show off what he had done, but it seemed like Dr. Wendell was more modest. The clean glass windows let the grey light spill in and illuminate the white and silver office furniture. Paperwork was neatly organized at every corner and magazines were stacked perfectly in the lounge area. It was slightly off putting to see everything so clean and organized. Even the light grey tile floor seemed to be spotless. As Eddie glanced around at the people working there, he scoffed at the fact that Tony was right. Everyone there was wearing business professional attire, and Eddie would have stuck out like a sore thumb if he had worn what he had originally planned to wear.

As Eddie approached the front desk, he noticed the two cameramen from his work were scanning the building for someone. One of the cameraman’s gaze fell on Eddie, and they did a double take.

“Damn Eddie, we barely recognized you.” the cameramen commented as Eddie walked to them.

“The boss said to dress up, so I did.” Eddie replied as he shoved his hands in the topcoat pockets.

“Yeah, but you look like you just walked out of a suit magazine.”

Eddie rolled his eyes and glanced to the front desk.

“Come on; I’ve been told Wendell doesn’t like tardiness.”

*~*~*

“Mr. Brock, how lovely to meet you.” a soft voice welcomed as Eddie stepped into the pale office. Sitting at the glass desk was a middle aged women with fair skin and piercing, ocean blue eyes. Her dark brown hair was pulled back in a tight bun and clear glasses frames sat at the bridge of her nose.

“Likewise, Dr. Wendell.” Eddie politely replied as he walked over to the desk. “Would you like to head over to the conference room? Everything has been set up.”

“Lead the way.”

As Eddie walked beside the tall doctor, he noticed her flats clicked like tall heels and echoed throughout the hallway. Although she seemed kind-hearted and caring, Eddie’s guard was up. Drake tried to have the same facade, but he had his faults with it. Once they made it to the conference room, the two cameramen inside the room began to mess with the camera. The conference room had been emptied on one half of the room and only a small glass table and two chairs opposite from one another sat in the middle. Before the doctor continued on her path to one of the chairs, Eddie walked past her and pulled out the chair.

“Why thank you, Mr. Brock.” Dr. Wendell thanked as she sat down and adjusted her spotless, white lab coat. “ I have to admit, I didn’t expect you to be the chivalrous type.”

“I’ve found that it comes with age.” Eddie replied, trying to be more formal than what he was used to. Once the cameras were ready and the welcoming,idle conversation had subsided, Eddie pulled out his small notepad along with a pen that was heavier than his usual gel pen. As he pulled it out of his pocket, he realize his pen had been replaced with a fancier pen that had black and gold designs on it. A small, yellow sticky note was attached to it and read: _“You are **not** using a cheap old pen for this. Just give it back once your done. - TS.” _

Eddie smirked and put the sticky note back in his pocket and twisted the pen open.

“So, Dr. Wendell, how have you been since the incident involving Carlton Drake?” Eddie questioned as he flipped open his notepad.

“The company has been alright, but I, personally, have been upset at him.” the doctor began. “I cannot believe I worked with such a horrid man.”

“What did you and Drake work on?”

The doctor’s eyes glaze drifted to the side as she sighed.

“One of our main projects was a STEM cell research experiment, but he stopped working with me once he found a cure for cancer. I wanted to continue finding cures for other diseases, but he had other plans in mind.” She explained as she pushed her glasses up.

Eddie glanced down at his list of notes and quietly calculated which one would be best to ask next. Although he had done numerous interviews and meetings with well known people, this one gave him the most nerves. He knew if he messed this meeting up, he couldn’t come back from it. Finding and investigating his own stories in California was a walk in the park compared to now. With this investigation, he had to plan out everything to make sure if something failed, he already had a plan B.

“Did you or Drake ever become competitive with each other? I know both of you had butted heads with Tony Stark.”

“While Mr. Stark is a smart man, there was no way he could compete with our work.” Dr. Wendell half-scoffed; her voice almost cold. “Drake and I did have a falling out, but our only competition was to find cures for illnesses.”

She fiddled with one of the opaque, white buttons on her lab coat.

“I understand you are trying to get answers for his actions, but I’m having trouble understanding why I would be a person of interest.” she added.

“You are one of the closest people he worked with. Everyone is dying to get their hands on his research with the samples he brought from space.” Eddie replied, choosing his response carefully. Her dark brown eyebrows furrowed as fought a glare.

“I would never agree to work with those _things_.” She spat, and Eddie felt the symbiote stirr angrily in his chest, but they stayed quiet. “I may have been a friend to Mr. Drake, but he is a monster for killing people and using them as test subjects for a selfish cause.”

“What do you believe he should have done with his resources?”

“My life has been dedicated to finding the best way to heal people. Mr. Drake had all the resources to continue our research in defeating diseases that have wiped out thousands, but he chose to move his research to space. Same goes for Mr. Stark. He could have helped with developing better prosthetics; Instead, he developed weapons and suits of armor.”

The cold air Eddie felt when he had walked into the building seemed colder now.

_“Eddie.”_ Venom whispered. Eddie was about to scold the symbiote mentally, but he halted. They knew not to talk during meetings and interviews, so it had to be important. _“Something’s not right. We do not trust her.”_

_But she cares about people’s lives and advancing medicine._ Eddie countered internally.

_“Didn’t Drake say the same thing?”_

“Mr. Drake seemed to have forgotten how special human lives are and how they can advance research.” Dr. Wendell continued with a sigh, as if to cool off her building anger. “He may have cured cancer, but he won’t find cures to other deadly diseases floating around in space. I’m sure the answers are all here on earth.”

Although the doctor’s answer seemed sincere and kind, something about it sat wrong in Eddie. She was hinting something, but she wasn’t going to state it; especially not in front of cameras.

“And what makes you say that?” Eddie probed.

“Although we cannot see it, I believe our lives hold more gifts than we expect.” She replied. Something about her answer seemed coded, and wrong. Eddie nodded and scribbled notes in his notepad, and when he looked up, he looked the doctor in the eye. The sea blue he saw churned questionably, but he could tell she was trying to calm them. Everything about her seemed kind and caring, but Eddie knew better. Her records were astounding and almost too perfect. When there was perfection, there were secrets.

_“Do not trust her.”_

*~*~*

“Eddie! You’re back!” Peter chirped as he looked up from his homework. “How did it go?”

“Better than I expected.” Eddie replied as he passed the table Peter sat at. “Have you seen Stark anywhere?”

“Yeah, he’s in his workshop.”

And with that, Eddie quietly fast-walked to the cluttered workshop. As he walked in, he noticed Tony looking through several projected blue screens. They all displayed articles about people going missing within the past week, and their link.

“Stark. You busy?” Eddie called out as he knocked.

“Not anymore. What’s up?” The mechanic asked as he closed the windows down.

“I couldn’t help but overhear your argument with Cap the other day.” Eddie started. “Something is going on with inhumans, isn’t there?”

“How do you know about those?” Tony asked as he glanced at the reporter.

“New York isn’t the only place with aliens and super-powered people.”

Tony rolled his eyes and sighed.

“Yes, several inhumans have gone missing, and now it’s becoming a risk to send some of our avengers out.” The mechanic explained, as he reopened the blue screens for Eddie to see.

“You’re in luck.”Eddie replied as he glanced at the articles.  “I think I just found a possible suspect.”


End file.
